Lamp-making machine.



A. SWAN.

LAMP MAKING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED D'E0.19, 190s.

Patented Dec. 12, 1911.

5 SHEBTSSHEET 1.

Inventor Atty.

Patented Dec. 12, 1911.

5 SHEETS-SHBET 2.

t u w W/ A .M a WM l a Z 6 H W, l. W \I M N z 3 itnesses: 1W Q.

. A. SWAN. LAMP MAKING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED DEO.19, 190B.

P atented Dec. 12, 1911.

5 SHEETSSHEET 3.

Invefltor Alfred Swan Atty.

A. SWAN.

LAMP MAKING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED 1320.19, 1908.

Patented Dec. 12, 1911.

5 SHEETSSH EET 4 Fig. 6.

Witnesses: 1 I Inventor PM Alfr-edSwan. 1 y

Att 'y v A. SWAN.

LAMP MAKING MACHINE.

L 1 9 1 2 1 C 6 D d 8 t n w a P om 0 9 1 9 1 G E D D E L I I N 0 T. n Ac I L P A 5 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

\nventor Alfred Swan.

Atty.

Witnesses:

UNITED STATES OFFICE.

ALFRED swan, 0E UPPER MONTCLAI'R, ivEw JEEsEY, assre von To GENERALELECTRIC COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

LAMP-MAKING MACHINE;

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed December 19, 1908. Serial No. 468,282.

Patented Dec. 12, 1911.

To all. whom it may concern:

' Be it known that I, ALFRED SWAN, a subject of the King of GreatBritain, residing at Upper Montclair, county of Essex, State of NewJersey, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Lamp-MakingMachines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to machines for making incandescent lamps and itsobject is to provide a lamp making machine 1n WhlCl'l 7 the varioussteps of blowing off of the neck of a bulb to the proper length, theplacing of thebulb in proper relation to a stem carrying the filament,and the sealing of the stem into the bulbs are carried out automaticallywithout requiring any skill on the part of the operator. h

In carrying out my invention an automatic blowing off device isprovided'in which the operator places a bulb, which is then rotatedabout its longitudinal axis while a flame is directed against its neckuntil the glass melts, whereupon automatic devices operate to cut orblow off the neck of the bulb in a plane at right angles to itslongitudinal axis and to slightly flare the open end of the neck. Thestem is sealed into the bulb by an automatic sealing-in device, and theonly work required of the operator is to remove the finished lamp fromthe sealingin device,

replace it with a stem provided with a filament and with leading-inwires, and then place a bulb in the blowing off device, whereupon atransfer mechanism automatically actuated in definite relation to theblowing off device and to the automatic sealing-in device, picks up theblown off bulb and places it on the sealing-in device with the neck ofthe bulb in contact with the stem and the filament on the stem in properposition inside the bulb. In order to permit the filament to passthrough the neck of the bulb without injury an automatic filamentprotector covers and protectsthe filament during its passage through theneck of the bulb, and is then automatically removed from around thefilament after the bulb and stem are brought into proper relation toeach other on thes'ealing-in device ready to be sealed together. Thesealing-in device brings the bulb and stem within range of preliminaryburners where the parts are slightly heated, then within range of thesealing-in burners, where the stem is fused I machine are positivelydriven in definite relation to each other, and after the operator placesa stem and a bulb in the machine, the succeeding steps take placewithout intervention on the part of the operator.

into the neck of the bulb while both are ro- My invention will best beunderstood in connection with the accompanying drawings, whichillustrate one of the many forms in which the invention may be embodied,and in which- Fi ure 1 is a side view of a machine embodymg theinvention; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the machine shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3is a plan view similar to Fig. 2, with part of the mechanism removed toshow the driving mechanism; Fig. 4 is an elevationvpartly in sectionshowing details of the transfer mechanism, of the filament protector,and of the rotatable spider which carries the r0- tating heads; Fig. 5is a plan view showing details of the filament protector; Fig. 6 is anelevation partly in section showing details of the blowing off deviceand transfer mechanism; Fig. 7 is a view artl in section showing detailsof one of the eads of the sealing-in device; Fig. 8 is a plan viewshowing the clamp on the head of Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 shows the bulb as it is placed in the blowing off device; Fig. 10the same bulb after it has been blown off and Fig. 11 the lamp as it isremoved from the sealing-in device. I

' In the form of machine shown in the drawings, the various parts of'the device are mounted on a table or support 1 and are actuated indefinite relation to each other from the driving shaft'2 journaledv insuitable bearings on the table and r0 tat'ed by the driving pulley 3.The driving shaft is, connected through beveled "gears 4 and spur gears5 with the blowing-off device and through spur gears 6 with a verticalcountershaft 7 provided at theupper end with a supporting shoulder7 andmounted in a bearing 8 on the table. The supply ofvair and gas to'theblowing-off device is automatically controlled by a flat rotary valve 9and the different parts of to the other the blowing off device arepneumatically operated in proper sequence by means of a controllingvalve 9, both valves being mounted on the lower end of the countershaft7, while the transfer mechanism is automatically operated in properrelation arts of the machine to transfer the bulb rom the blowing-offdevice to the sealing-in device by actuating mechanism comprising facecams 10 and 11 mounted on the countershaft 7, and provided with grooves12 and 13 shaped as shown in Fig. 3. The filament protecting device isdevice comprising a spider 18 having four arms with a rotatable head 19mounted on the outer end of each arm. The parts are so proportioned thatin the operation of the machine, the spider is intermittently rotated tobring each head in succession, as shown in Fig. 2, to the position Awhere the operator places a stem on the stem holder carried by eachhead, then to the second position B where the bulb is automaticallyplaced in position over the filament, then to the third position C wherethe preliminary burner 20 heats the joint between the bulb and stem andthen to the fourth position D between the sealing-in burners 21, wherethe sealing-in is completed, the spider being held stationary for ashort period of time in each of said positions. The rotatable head inthe sealing-in position D is rotated from the driving shaft 2throughspiral gears 22 which drive a vertical shaft extending through the tableand carrying on its upper end a clutch member 23 arranged to engage androtate each head which comes into position D, similar gearing 22 andclutch 23 being provided to rotate each head as it comes into position Cbetween the pr liminary burners.

The tubulate lamp bulbs shown in Fig. 9 are placed by the operator in ablowingoff device which rotates them about their longitudinal axis whileblowing-off burners direct a flame against the neck of the bulb at theproper point until the glass melts, whereupon the excess portion of theneck drops off, leaving the bulb sealed up by a thin film of glassacross the neck. The burners are then ,cut downand air under pressureintroduced into the bulb to blow said film into a bubble whicheventually breaks leaving a ragged fringe on the edge of the neck. Thepreferred form of blowing-off device, as shown in Fig. 6, compriseshollow vertical pedestals 24 which are mounted on the table and carry atthe upper end an annular support 25. A rotatable bulb holder 26 withteeth on the edge to mesh with the gear 5 is rotatably mounted in thesupport 25 with its lower end adjacent some suitable shaper whichinsures that the neck of the bulb will be cut oil in a plane at rightangles to the longitudinal axis of the bulb. The shaper is made of anysuitable refractory material and is preferably constructed, as shown inFig. 6, in the form of a stationary annulus, consisting of twose1nicircular members 27 mounted on a stationary pivot on the support 25and relatively movable like the jaws of a pair of pincers in a plane atright angles to the axis of the bulb holder. The members 27 are mountedvery close to the lower end of the bulb holder and are provided with afiat surface in a plane at right angles to the axis of the bulb holder.The two semicircular members closely surround the neck of the bulb whenthey are in engagement with each other, as shown in Fig. 6, and theopening in the shaper is slightly countersunk or beveled on the loweredge to permit the neckof the bulb to be flared out slightly when it isblown off. The semi-circular members are separated to permit theinsertion of the bulb in the blowing off device and are then closedaround the neck of the bulb during the operation of blowing off, by anysuitable mechanism, preferably a pneumatic actuator 27 operated bycompressed air and automatically controlled by the valve 9 which isoperated'by a cam ,or valve 9. The thin ragged fringe of glass remainingon the neck of the bulb after blowing off is broken off and the edge ofthe neck is smoothed by a cooperating stripper 28 movably mountedadjacent the rotatable bulb holder and automatically moved intoengagement with the shaper 27 by any suitable mechanism driven in suchrelation to the bulb holder that the stripper is operated after the neckof the bulb has been blown ofl.

The preferred form of stripper actuating mechanism is a pneumaticactuator 28 operated by compressed air, which is automatically suppliedat the proper time by the valve 9. The stripper 28 has a fiat surfacewhich is brought parallel to the flat surface of the shaper 27, andbreaks off the ragged edge or fringe of the neck of the blown ofi' bulb,thereby insuring that the edge of the neck of the bulb is in a plane atright angles to the axis of the bulb. The bulb is heated immediatelybelow the shaper 27 along the line where it is to be cut off by a ringof burners 29 mounted upon the annularI which pass up through theinterior the pedestals 24 and the exact oint at which the neck of thebulb is cut 0 can be varied by changing the relation of the support 25to the annular bracket 30 byany suitable mechanism, such as adjustingscrews arranged to raise and lower the support'25, and operated by'handwheels 31. As the flame from the burners 29 softens the glass of theneck of the bulb, and the walls of .the neck gradually collapse thelower portion of the neck drops off, leaving across the open end of theneck a thin ilm of glass which is blown off and removed, while at thesame time the edge of the neck is flared into the desired form by meansof.

air introduced under pressure into the bulb to blow the film across theneck of the bulb into a bubble which eventually breaks. Air underpressure may be introduced into the bulb at the proper moment by anysuitable mechanism, but in the preferred form is automaticallyintroduced by means of an inverted cup 32 which is shaped to make an airtight joint with. the upper end of the bulb and is brought into engaement with the bulb in the bulb holder 26 y means of the transfer .orbulb positioning mechanism which transfers the bulb from the blowingofldevice to the sealing-in device. The cup 32 is mountedon the transfermechanism on theend of abracket 33 securedto a transfer rod 34 which ismounted to rotate and also to slide longitudinally along its axis ofrotation.v This movement may be given to the rod in various ways,preferably by slidably mounting the rod in a rotatable sleeve 35 carriedin suitable journals on the table' 1 and rotated in definite relation tothe other parts of the machine from the face,

- cam 11 by a crank 36 mounted on the lower is driven by the face cam10.

end of the sleeve and actuated by a rod 37 which is provided with aroller to engage the groove in the face cam .11. The longitudinalmovement of the rod 34 is secured by forming on the lower end of the roda rack meshing with a pinion 38, which in turn is rotated in definiterelation to the remainder of the mechanism by means of a pinion 39 inmesh with a rack 40 which The cams 10 and 11 are timed to swing theinverted cup 32 into alinement' with the bulb in the bulb holder of theblowing off device by the rotation of the rod 34 and then intoengagement with the upper end of the bulb by the longitudinal movementof the rod. As the cup 32 engages the bulb air under pressure isautomatically supplied to the interior of the cup through a flexiblepipe 41 controlled by a slide valve 42 mounted on the upper end of thesleeve 35 and operated by a projection 43 on the rod- 34, when the rod34 is in its lowest position, to connect the pipe 41 With a pipe 44,which is. connected with a source of air under pressure; The slide valve9" which controls the members of the sha er 27 is operated in anysuitable way,

pre erably by means ofv a cam mounted on" into a bubble which eventuallybursts,"

whereupon the stri per 28 is brought into engagement with t e shaper 27,breaking oil the. ragged fringe of glass and smoothing the rough edgesof the neck of the bulb,

thereby causing the edge of the neck of the bulb to be straightand'smooth and of the desired flare,

After the bulb has been blown off by the mechanism above described, theshaper 27 is opened by the action of iston 27* operated by valve 9 andthe bu b is'lifted from the bulb holder 26 by any suitable form oftransfer or bulb positioning mechanism which preferably comprises, inaddition to the mechanism above described for bringlng the cup 32 inengagement-with the bulb, a gripping device mounted on the bracket 33 togrip the bulb and carry it from the blowing off device to the sealingindevice. Various forms of gripping device'may be used, but a satisfactoryform is that shown in the drawing in which grip ping arms 47 provided attheir lower ends with clamps for engaging the bulb are pivotedto thebracket 33 and moved by a control mechanism consisting of a toggle 48 1connected to the gripping arms above their 1 pivots. When the toggle 48is straightened out the grlp-ping arms are actuated to bring the clampsinto engagement with the bulb, and when the toggle is broken, as

shown in Fig. 1, the gripping arms release the bulb. The to gle isstraightened by a control rod 49 s idably mounted on the bracket 33 andhaving a roller or other suitis broken by means of a control projection50 mounted on one of the links of the toggle. The parts are soproportioned that when the bracket 33 is moved .to bring the cup 32 ableengaging surface at its lower end, and

into engagement with the bulb, the roller 12 on the sliding control rod49 engages the bulb holder 26, whereupon further movement of the 'cupcauses the control rod to straighten the toggle 48 and move the grip- Parms to engage and hold the bulb.

After the bulb has been blown ofl", a longitudinal movement of the rod34 lifts the bulb out of the bulb holder, after which the rod is rotatedon its axis to swing the bulb into position over a stem which is carriedon the stem'support of that particular head 19 of the sealing-in devicewhich at this time ably journaled in a boss on the end of an armof thespider 18, and carrying the two vertical rods 52, on the upper end ofwhich a saddle piece 53 is adjustably mounted by means of set screws, asbest shown in Fig. 7 so that the saddle iece may be moved up and down onthe re s. A cup shaped bulb support or yoke 54, properly shaped toreceive and hold the bulb, is slidably mounted on the saddle piece 53 inguides, as clearly shown in Fig. 8, and is normally held in the positionshown by means of a spring 55 secured at each end to the saddle 53. The

bulb support, being yieldingly held in normai posltion is self adjustingalong its guides to receive the bulb being placed in it 'by the transfermechanism, thereby ,insuring the proper seating of the bulb in the bulbsupport. The operator can also slide the bulb support back out of theway against the tension of the spring 55 by pressing upon a thumb piece56 made of fiber or other similar material which will not become too hotto handle.

The bulb grippers on the transfer mechanism are actuated in properrelation to the sealing-in device to release the bulb when it is inposition in the bulb support by means of any suitable gripper actuatingdevice which is preferab y made in the form of a quadrant shaped lug 57mounted on the upper endof one of the rods 52 in a position to beengaged by the control projec tion or rod 50, whereby the rod 50 ismoved and the bulb gripper is actuated at the proper time to release thebulb.

The stem is held in proper relation to the bulb by any suitable stemsupport which will hold the stem in"- alinement with the longitudinalaxis of the bulb and maintain it in proper relation to the bulb duringthe operation of sealing in. In the preferred form of device the stemsupportis made in the form of a rod 58, mounted in the base block 51 toslide longitudinally and split at one 'end to form two cotiperatingsprmg jaws 59, normally tending to spring apart and shaped at the upperend into stem supports 60, which may be inserted in the interior of thestem and by springing apart will firmly grip the stem. The stemisreleased at the proper time by any suitable mechanism whichautomatically moves the spring jaws 59 toward each other and therebymoves the stem holders out of engagement with the walls of the stem. Thepreferred form of mechanism for accomplishing this result is actuated bythe longi-' tudinal movement of the stem support and comprises conicalstem releasing cams 61 secured to the spring jaws 59 in a position toenter a taper socket 62 in the base block 51 when the stem support ismoved downward. The stem support 58 is normally yieldingly held in theposition shown in Fig.7, by a spring 63 secured at one end to thesupport 58 and at the other end to a block 64 firmly secured within thebase block 51. As the head 19 is carried toward the final position A,the stem support 58 and the bulb support 54 are automatically moved awayfrom each other for the purpose of drawing down the stem, therebystraightening the stem in the bulb, making a more perfect seal betweenthe bulb and the stem, and giving the neck of the lamp the form shown'inFig. 11. In the method heretofore used this relative movement of thebulb and the stem is produced by the operator pulling on the leading-inwires, but in accordance with my invention may be roduced by anysuitable mechanism, pre erably by means of a stationary cam 66 which ismounted in such a position near the first position A, as shown in Fig.1, that as the head carries the lamp from position D toward position Aand while the glass is still lastic from the sealing-in operation, thepm 65 catches under the stationary cam 66, which draws the stem support58 down against the tension of the sprlng 63 into the position shown inFig. 1 During the first part of this movement of the stem support 58,the'stem holder 60 grips the stem with sufiicient force to pull the stemdown into the position shown in Fig. 11, while further movement of thestem support brings the stem releasing cam 61 into engagement with thesocket 62 whereby the spring jaws 59 are pressed together and the stemis re leased. Each head 19 is held against rotation in positions A and Bby means of a locking rod 67 slidably mounted on the spider 18 with itsouter end extending through the boss on the end of the arm of the spiderand the base block 51 into a recess in the block 64, while its inner endis shaped into a head for engaging a stationary cam 68 mounted adjacentthe hub of the spider and arranged to move the locking rods toward theaxis of the spider thereby leaving the heads 19 free to rotate while inpositions C and D.

During the downward movement of the bulb into the holder 54, the edge ofthe neck of the bulb is apt'to strike and break the filament, and somesuitable form of filament sheath or protector is therefore provided toprevent the bulb coming in contact with the ment sheath 69 is made inthe form of a tube split longitudinally, and with the two halves mountedon pivoted arms 70, which'may be moved to separate the halves of thetube and thereby permit the tube to' be placed around the stem support.The pivoted arms 7 0 arecarried by a base 7 1 which is mounted to slideat right angles to the axis of the stem support and is carried uponamovable support 72 mounted to move parallel to the axis of the stemsupport. The movable support 72 is preferably carried on a rod slidablymounted in any suitable guide 74 on the table 1 and actuated at theproper time by the edge cam 15, as shown in Fig. 4.

The pivoted arms of the filament sheath may be moved by anysuitablemechanism but. in the preferred construction, as-shown in the drawings,extensions 75 on the arms carry pins 76 which engage grooves in a cam 77mounted on the movable support 72. The grooves in the cam 77 are shapedto cause the halves of the filament sheath to separate when the slidingbase 71 is moved toward the rod and to come into engagement with eachother and form a, closed tube around the filament when the sliding baseis moved in the other direction into the position shown in Figs. 4 and5. The sliding base 71 is moved relatively to the support 72 by apivoted actuating arm 78 which extends through a slot in the slidingbase71 and is pivoted at the lower end as shown in Fig. 4 to a fixed pointon the table 1. The actuating arm 78 is bent as shown in Fig. 4 and isprovided with an extension 79 which normally slides in-a groove in ablock 80 carried by the movable support 72. As the block 80 drops downwith the movement ofthe support 7 2, the projection 79 slides alonggroove until the movable support 72 reaches its lowermost position atwhich point the extension 79 enters a slot 80 over the roller 81 andcauses the actuating arm 78 to swing about its pivot in a clockwisedirection there by moving the sliding base 71 toward the slidable rod 73and causing the halves of the filament sheath to separate and to moveback from the head 19'. Since the upper portion of the actuating arm isparallel to the rod 73, the first portion of the downward movement ofthe movable support 72 moves the filament sheath longitudinally ofthe'stem support until the sheath is below the stem. The next movementof the filament sheath toward the rod 73 causes'the halves of the sheathto separate and thereby permits it to be removed from around the stemsupport.

The operation of the device is as follows: When one of the heads 19 isin the first position A the stem support is automatically drawn down andthe stem holders 60 are thereby brought close together. The operatorplaces a tubulatedbulb on the blowingofi device, and then places thestem on the stem support, the operation of placing the stemon the stemsupport being facilitated by the operator pushing the bulb support 53back out of the way by pressing on the fiber button 56. After the stemis in position the bulb support is released and is returned to normalposition by the spring 55. The bulb in the blowing off device is rotatedabout its longitudinal axis while the neck is being heated, the cap 32is brought into engagement with the bulb, and the bulb is blown off awithout any further attention on the part of the operator. The movementof the cap 32 into engagement with the bulb causes the gripping deviceto seize the bulb and the face cams 10 and 11 first lift and then rotatethe rod 34 about its axis until the bulb held by the gripping device isbrought into alinement with the second position B. During the operationof the blowing off device the intermittent gearing has caused the spiderto make one-quarter of a revolution and the head 19 on which theoperator placed the stem has been moved into the second position B,where the locking rod 67 locks the head with the lug 57 in position tocause the about the time the head'19 reachedthe second position B, theedge cam 15 began to raise the movable support 72, thereby causing thesliding base 71 to move away from the slidable rod 7 3, and to bring thefilament sheath around the stem support of the head 19. By the time themovable support 72 has accomplished about one-half of its upwardmovement, the filament sheath has been antomatically placed in position.around the stem support and the two halves of the filament sheath are inengagement with each other as shown in Fig. 5. The continued up-, wardmovement of the movable support 72' moves the filament sheathlongitudinally of the stem support and as the sheath passes up overthestem and over the filament, the filament is compressed within thefilament sheath untilwhen the movable support 72 reaches its uppermostposition as shown in Fig. 4 the filament is completely within thefilament sheath. Bythis time the face cam 10 is lowering the rod 34, andthereby bringing the bulb toward the head 19. As the ripping device torelease the bulb. At I edge of the neck of the bulb approaches closelyto the filament sheath 69, the edge ,cam 15 begins to lower the movablesupport 72 and the filament sheath at the same rate as the bulb islowered, thereby protecting the filament until the edge of the neck ofthe bulb is below the filament, whereupon the filament sheath dropslongitudinally of the stem support and moves away from around the stembefore the edge of the neck of the bulb comes in contact with the stem.The gripping device releases the bulb which it placed in the bulb holder54 in proper relaposition C within range of the preliminary.

burners, where the cam 68 withdraws the locking rod 67, leaving the headfree to be rotated by the clutch 23 with the joint be tween the stem andthe edge ofthe neck of the bulb in alinement with the flame of thepreliminary burners, and then on the next portion D, where the lockingrod 67 is still drawn back and the head is rotated between the sealingin burners from the driving shaft 2 by the clutch member 23 and thescalingin is accomplished. During the next movement of the spider, whilethe lamp is moving toward the first position A and the glass is stillplastic, the stem is pulled down by the downward movement of the stemsupport 58 caused by the pin 65 engaging the inclined part of thestationary cam 66. This movement straightens the stem in the bulb andalso produces a better joint between the stem and the bulb. As the stemsupport is pulled farther down the spring jaws 59' are forced towardeach other, whereby the stem is released from the stem holders 60 andthe lamp is ready to be removed from the head by the operator, who thenplaces a new stem on the stem holder and a new bulb in the blowing offdevice, whereupon the operation above described is repeated.

My invention may be embodied in many other forms than that shown anddescribed, and I do not wish to be restricted to the specificarrangement disclosed, but intend to cover by the appended claims allchanges and modifications within the spirit and scope of my invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates, is,-

1. In a lamp making machine, the combination with an automaticsealing-in device for fusing a stem into the neck of a bulb, of meansactuated in definite time relation to said device whereby a relativemovement is produced between said bulb and said stem while the jointbetween them is plastic.

2. In a lamp making machine, the combination with an automaticsealing-in device for fusing a stem into the neck of a bulb, of meanswhereby said stem is moved longitudinally of said bulb, said means beingactuated by said device to move said stem while the joint between saidstem and said bulb is plastic.

3. In a lamp making machine, the combination with an automaticsealing-in device for fusing a stem into the neck of a bulb, of a stemsupport arranged to grip said stem and mounted to move relatively tosaid bulb, and operating means controlled by said device to move saidsupport relatively to said bulb while the joint between said stem andsaid bulb is plastic.

4. In a lamp making machine, the combination with a sealing-in devicecomprising a head for positioning a bulb and a stem in proper relationto each other, burners mounted to direct the flame toward said head tofuse the stem into the bulb, and actuating means for said devicearranged to cause the effect of said, burners to decrease when fusionhas been effected, of means controlled by said actuating means forproducing a relative movement between the stem and the bulb held in saidhead while the joint between them is plastic.

5. In a lamp making machine, the combination with a bulb holder and astem support movable relatively to each other and arranged to normallyhold the stem and bulb in position for scaling in, of burners for fusingthe stem into the neck of the bulb, and actuating means arranged to movesaid bulb holder and said stem support away from each other while thejoint is plastic.

. 6. In a lamp making machine, the combination with a bulb holder, of astem support normally in position to hold the stem in contact with theneck of a bulb held immovable in said holder, said support being mountedto move'longitudinally of said bulb, means 'for holding a stem immovableon the said support, burners mounted to fuse said stem and said bulbtogether, and actuating means for said stem support arranged toautomatically move said support away from said bulb holder while thejoint between the stem and the bulb is plastic.

7. In a lamp making machine, the combination with a movable carrier, ofa sealingin head mounted on said carrier comprising a bulb holder and astem support movable relatively to each other, burners mounted adjacentthe path of said head to fuse a stem in said support into a bulb in saidholder, and means for producing a relative movement between said holderand said support, said means being controlled by said carrier at adefinite point in the path of said head.

8. In a lamp making machine, the combi' -'.whereby said stem support ismoved away from said holder as said carrier moves said head away fromsaid burners.

9. In a lamp making machine, the combination with a movable carrier, ofa scalingin head mounted" on said carrier comprising a' bulb holder anda stem support mounted to reciprocate, burners mounted adjacent the pathof said head to fuse a stem on said support into a bulb in said holder,and a cam mounted adjacent said carrier to en gage said stem support andmove it away from said bulb holder as said carrier moves said head awayfrom said burners.

10. In a lamp making machine, the combination with a movable carrier, ofa rotatable sealing-in head mounted on said carrier and comprising abulb holder, a stem support splined in said head to move relatively tosaid bulb holder, a projecting pin secured to said support, burners forsealing a stem on said stem support into a bulb in said holder, astationary cam mounted adjacent said burners in the path of said pin todraw said stem support away from said holder as said head is carriedaway from said burners, and locking means controlled.

by said carrier to lock said head against rotation with said pin inposition to engage said cam. v

11. In a blowing-ofiI' device for lamp bulbs, the combination with meansfor'rotating a bulb about its longitudinal axis, burners for heating theneck of the bulbto sever it, and means for supplying air under pressureto saidbulb, of a shaper arranged to engage the neckvof said bulb wherethe neck is heated.

12. In a blowing-off device for lamp bulbs, the combination with meansfor rotating a bulb about its longitudinal axis, burners for heating theneck of the bulb to sever it, and means for supplying air under pressureto said bulb, of an annular shaper mounted to surround the neck of thebulb and provided with a flatsurface at right angles to the axis ofrotation of the bulb, and means cooperating with the flat surface ofsaid shaper to remove the excess glass from the neck.

13.. In a blowing-oil device I for lamp bulbs, the combination with arotatable holder arranged to rotate a bulb about its longitudinal axis,and burners for heating the neck of said bulb to sever it, of a shapercomprising semicircular members movable relatively to each other andarranged to surround the neck of said bulb at the point' where the bulbis heated, and controlling mechanism actuated in definite relation tosaid holder to move said members into and out of engagement with theneck of the bulb.

14. In a blowing-oil device for lamp bulbs, the combination with arotatable holder arranged to rotate a'bulb about its longitudinal axis,and burners for heating the neck of said bulb to sever it, of anannularshaper surrounding the neck of said bulb adjacent the point of heatingand in a plane at right angles to the axisof rotation of the bulb, and amovable cooperating member having a fiat surface movable intoengageirent with said shaper to smooth the ragged edge of said neck.

15. In a lamp making machine, the combination with a sealing-in devicecomprising a holder for maintaining a bulb and a stem in fixed relationto each other, said holder being mounted to rrove bodilyand therebycarry the bulb and stem into difierent holder to seal the stem into thebulb, of an automatic bulb-positioning device mounted adjacent anotherposition of said holder and arranged to place a bulb in position in saidholder, and common actuating means for said devices;

16. In -a lamp making machine, the combination with a sealing-in devicecomprising a holder for maintaining a bulb and stem in fixed relation,to each other, said holder being movable into different posi-' tions insuccession, and burners mounted adjacent one of the positions of saidholder to seal the stem into the bulb, of an automatic bulb-positioningdevice comprising a bulb-carrying member movable relatively to saidholder, gripping means mounted on said member, and common actuatingIreans for said devices arranged to bring said member and gripping meansinto operative relation to a bulb and to said holder in succession andthereby place the bulb in position in said holder.

17. In a lamp making machine, the combination with a sealing-in devicecomprising a holder for maintaining a bulb and stem infixed relation toeach other, said holdenbeing movable into different positionsinsuccession, and burners mounted adjacent one of the positions of saidholder to seal-the stem into the bulb, of an automatic bulb-positioningdevice mounted ad jacent said holder to place a bulb in saidtion to oneanother.

18. In a lamp making machine, the combination with a holder formaintaining a bulb and a stem in definite relation to each other, of abulb-positioning device mounted adjacent said holder to place a bulbtherein, a filament sheath mounted adjacent said bulb-positioning deviceand arranged to inclose the filament on the stem in said holder, therebypermitting the filament to be introduced into the neck of the bulb, andmeans for maintaining said filament sheath in protecting position duringthe operation of said bulb-positioning device.

19. In a lamp making machine, the combination with a holder formaintaining a bulb and a stem in definite relation to each other, of abulb-positioning device mounted adjacent said holder to place a bulbtherein, and a filament protector comprising a sheath mounted adjacentsaid holder and arranged to inclose the filament on the stem in saidholder when actuated.

20..In a lamp making machine, the combination with a holder formaintaining a bulb and a stem in definite relation to each other, ofabulb-positioning device mounted adjacent said holder to place a bulbtherein a tubular filament sheath of less diameter than the neck of thebulb, and means for placing said sheath around the filament on the stemin said holder whereby the filament is protected from injury by contactwith the neck of the bulb.

21. In a lamp making machine, the combination with a holder formaintaining a bulb and a stem in definite relation to each other, of abulb-positioning device mounted adjacent said holder to'place a bulbtherein, a filament protecting device comprising a tubular sheath andarranged to inclose the filament on the stem in said holder, and commonactuating means for said devices arranged to maintain said sheath aroundsaid filament while the bulb is being placed in position and toafterward withdraw said sheath.

' 22. In a transfer mechanism for lamp machinery, the combination of abulb gripper mounted to be lifted out of one position swung intoalinement with a second position, and then lowered into said secondposition, actuating means for said gripper responsive to movement ofsaid gripper into either of said positions, and means for lifting saidgripper out of either position and lowering it into the other position.

23. In a transfer mechanism for lampmachinery the combination of a bulbgripper, a transfer member connected to said gripper, actuating meansfor moving said member to lift said gripper from one extreme position,swing it into alinement with another extreme position and finally lowerit into .said other extreme position, and

means for automatically actuating said gripper during the movement ofsaid gripper into either of said extreme positions.

24. In a transfer mechanism for lamp machinery, the combination of abulb gripper mounted to swing about an axis of rotation between twoextreme positions and to move in a direction perpendicular to its planeof rotation'into and out of said ex- .treme positions, andactuating'means rotating said gripper and for moving it perpendicular toits plane of rotation whereby said gripper is moved from one extremeposition to the other.

25. In a transfer mechanism for lamp machinery, the combination of atransfer member mounted to rotate about an axis and to reciprocate alongsaid axis of rotation, a bulb gripper mounted on said member eccentricto said axis of rotation, actuating meansfor reciprocating said memberto carry said gripper into and out of either of its extreme positionsand for rotating said member toswing said gripper out of alinement withone extreme position and into alinement with the other extreme position,and actuating means for said gripper responsive to the movement of saidgripper into either of said extreme positions.

26. In a transfer mechanism for lamp machinery, the combination of atransfer membermounted to rotate and to reciprocate along its axis ofrotation, a gripper movable between two extreme positions, and mountedon said member eccentric to the axis of rotation thereof, an actuatorfor rotating said transfer member to swing" said gripper out ofalinement with one of said extreme positions and into alinement with theother extreme position, a second actuator for reciprocating said memberto move said gripper perpendicularly to its plane of rotation and intoor out of either of said extreme positions, and driving means fordriving said actuators in definite relation to each otherv 27. In alampmaking machine, the combination with a holder comprising means forengaging a stem and means for engaging a bulb to maintain the stem andbulb in definite relation to each other, of a bulb-positioning devicecomprising a bulb-carrying member movable relatively to said holder, andmeans actuated by the movement of said member toward said holder torelease a bulb from said member.

28. In a lamp making machine, the combination with a holder comprisingmeans for engaging a stem and means for engaging a bulb to maintain thestem and bulb in definite relation to each other, of a bulbpositioningdevice comprising a bulb-carrying member movable into position .to placea bulb in said holder, and means on said holder engaged by said memberto release a bulb from said member.

29. In a lam making machine, the combination with a older comprisingmeans for e aginga stem and means forengaging a bu b to" old the stemand bulb in efinite relation to each other, of a-bulb-positioniiigdevice comprising a movable arm, a b clamp mounted on said arm,actuating means for moving said arm toward said holder to a place a bulbtherein, and releasing means i for said clamp actuated by contact withsaid holder. Y v a 30. In a lamp making machine, the combination with aholder for'maintainin a stem and a bulb in definite relation to eaother,

of a bulb-positioning device comprising a bulb-carrying member movablerelatively to said holder, a filament protector comprising a tubularsheath mounted to move longitudinally of the stem, and actuating meansfor.

. moving said sheath into position around said astem on said stemsupport, said bulb-support being mounted to move transversely of saidstem sup rt, and resilient means for normally hol lng saidsupports indefinite relation to each other.

33. Ahead for lamp making machines comprising a frame,.a bulb supportfor hold-v ing a bul in sealing-in relation to a stem on said stemsupport, said bulb support being mounted in guides on said frame toslide transversely of a stem held on said stem support, and a springengaging said bulb stem support.

an sai bulb supportin definite relation to said =34. In a lam makingmachine, the combination with a. ulb transfer mechanism, of a bulbsupport for holding a bulb in sealing-in relation to a stem on said stemsupport, said bulb support being 'eldingly mounted to move transverselyo the longitudinal axis of a bulb held therein, and actuating meanswhereby said transfer mechanism moves a bulb in the direction of the 10'tudinal axis of said bulb to place it in sai sup rt.

35. In a lam making machine, e combination with a ulb transfermechanism, of a bulb support for holding a bulb in sealingin relatlon toa stem on said stem support said bulb support be v yieldingly moun tomove transversely o the longitudinal axis of a bulb held therein, aspring for resilie'ntly holding said bulb support in normal position,and actuating means whereby said transfer mechanism moves a bulb inadirection arallel to the longitudinal axis of a bulb id in said sup rtand thereby brings the'bulb into place in said bulb sup- 36. In a lampmaking machine, the combination with a bulb transfer mechanism, of astem support, a bulb support for holding a bulb in sealing-in relationto a stem on said stem support, said bulb support be mounted to movetransversely o a stem hel on said stem support resilient means forholding said supports 1n definite relation to each other an actuatingmeans whereby plport and said frame to normally hold said transfermechanism moves a bulb longitudinally of the stem in said stem supportto place said bulb in said bulb support. In witness whereof, I havehereunto set my hand this-17th day of December 1908.

ALFRED sivAN. Witn: a

J. H. Emma, W. G. Pmcn.

